


sometimes i feel tired (but that's okay)

by blasphemmy



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF, sleepybois - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Bullying, Crying, Family Bonding, Family Dynamics, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Techno punches a dude and Wilbur decks him, im sorry phil is literally only mentioned :/, sleepybois, techno kinda spirals a bit but dw he's just worried, they're all protective af over tommy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-29
Updated: 2020-07-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:54:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25551616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blasphemmy/pseuds/blasphemmy
Summary: tommy is a protector. he might not be the smartest, nor the best with girls and boys alike, but at least he could protect his brothers. no matter what he could always win.in which one day tommy went into a fight he couldn't beat and loses his confidence.
Relationships: family only ya'll
Comments: 12
Kudos: 865
Collections: Dream Team By Egg





	sometimes i feel tired (but that's okay)

**Author's Note:**

> they didn't need anyone else but each other. family dynamics (but they're a real family)
> 
> this au was completely inspired by https://antarctic-bay.tumblr.com/post/616124295075201024/and-they-were-a-family-oh-my-god-they-were-a

“Where’s Tommy?” 

Wilbur snuck up behind his younger brother, causing Techno to shriek an inhumane sound as he struggled to catch his phone that Wilbur knocked out of his hand. The dark brunette fought every godforsaken urge to murder his older brother. 

“What took you so long? And don’t sneak up on me like that, I almost decked the living fuck out of you.” Techno scowled, lightly punching Wilbur’s defenceless arm. 

The taller of the two shoved a disgustingly bright pink chocolate box into Techno’s hands, accompanied by a card written in pretty lettering. He opened the box slightly, instantly greeted with the potent smell of luscious roses and lavender. Inside was filled to the brim with gourmet chocolate by probably the finest chocolatier in town (He would be lying if his mouth didn’t water at the sight and smell of that confectionary). Wilbur’s face was flushed as he took one of the chocolates inside. 

“Cassie Smith, in your year. Rich family down the block of us. You know.” Wilbur chuckled at the evident disgust that filled his younger brother’s face at the mention of the name. He threw the chocolates back into Wilbur’s hands, gagging at the handwritten card held in his hands. 

“She made 3 grammatical errors in the 2nd to last line. If you date someone, they better at least know how to spell, “unconditional” correctly and how to properly use semicolons.” Techno muttered, shoving his hands in his trouser pants. 

They all knew Wilbur was probably the most handsome of the four brothers, that’s not to say they were bad-looking, it’s just that charm that followed Wilbur that made him look so ‘suave’ and ‘charming’. Wilbur had many talents to back it up, a nice singing voice, good at playing instruments, a talking voice that just made people swoon over (“Absolutely revolting” as Techno put it).

It also meant that the other two brothers were pestered relentlessly about the infamous Wilbur of their school. When they first transferred into the school, girls (and boys, who’re we to judge) went up to Tommy or Techno to ask about their eldest brother. A cold hard stare from Techno now was all that took to drive them away. Perks of social anxiety actually helping his social status. 

Techno scoffed at the thought, thinking of the time Wilbur stepped on Tommy’s lego set the night before and cried and that time when he was so sleep deprived he started reciting the whole script of Hamilton (granted he started sobbing singing “Story of Tonight”, making Techno wake up and force his brother to go to sleep). Yeah, charming. 

“Can’t argue with that.” Wilbur swallowed the gourmet chocolate whole, picking out another one inside the box. “Anyway, have you seen Tommy?”

“The teachers held me back for half an hour and I thought he’d be with you.” Techno groaned, facepalming his forehead, “A decently sized pile of homework awaits all of us, we should get going soon.” 

Wilbur checked his watch, shaking his head, “He doesn’t have soccer practice now, right?” 

Techno shook his head, taking another one of Wilbur’s chocolates and stuffed it in his mouth. “I talked with Deo on the way here and he said they’re off training this whole week because their coach is getting married.”

“Oh, Pete? Man, it’s about time he got some.” Techno shoved his older brother again, laughing under his breath. 

“Don’t say that about teachers, apparently the whole soccer team is invited. I overheard Tommy telling Phil yesterday when we got back. God, I can’t imagine loving your job and nerds like Tommy to the point of inviting those nerds to your wedding.” 

“I can barely deal with one Tommy on a daily basis.” 

With that the two brothers stood there, anxiety building up in Techno as he watched the other kids all heading home. The muffled screech of the football coach’s whistle could be heard in the distance as Techno and Wilbur soon turned into the only ones left at the school’s entrance. 

If he wasn’t at practice, or with friends (he’d always message them beforehand), surely Tommy wouldn’t be studying in the library. There were more chances of Techno failing a test than Tommy being seen in a library near books. The time was nearly four-thirty when the faint anxiety became worry. 

Techno looked at Wilbur, biting his lip out of habit in concern. He tilted his head to the phone in his hand, eyebrows furrowing as he pointed at the time. Wilbur opened his phone and tried calling for their youngest brother. 

_One ring._

_Two rings._

_Three rings._

_“Hi you have reached Tommy’s voicemail. Please leave a message at the beep!”_

_*Beep*_

Their unapologetically loud brother’s voice greeted the two on voicemail, it wasn’t much help. 

Techno grimaced, staring at the clock yet again. “There’s a low chance he’s at the library, but we should check just in case.”

Wilbur nodded, slinging his bag back over his shoulder as they quickly jogged over to the library. Ignoring the loud shushes from the librarians, the two split off to search for their familiar blonde brother. They shuffled through all the aisles and bookshelves, even in the meeting rooms of the buildings. To no avail, the only thing the two found were students cramming homework, waiting for parents, or simply reading. 

Techno’s blood pumped faster, heart racing as he frantically ran out of the library to continue searching. Wilbur followed along, sighing cautiously as he picked up the pace. 

“Tommy?”

“Thomas Pandel!” 

“Tommy this isn’t funny!”

“Kid, where the fuck are you hiding?”

They split off to different corners of the school, sprinting across the yard. 

Techno turned a corner to the backdoor of the gym changing rooms. Hope for finding Tommy diminishing by the second. Surely the kid wouldn’t have gone far and was simply just playing around with his friends. He was a popular kid, it had to be that. 

As much as the two of them bullied Tommy, they couldn’t bear to lose his presence in their life. Techno shook his head, the situation wasn’t so dire. Tommy wouldn’t have run away, nor get kidnapped. 

The district they lived in had low crime rates, all would be fine. Even if it was a kidnapping, Tommy could fight back (God he couldn’t think of the worst case scenarios). 

No, no what if he couldn’t? What if he was bribed by some shady guy in the streets to follow him and now he’s being enslaved? Human trafficking wasn’t common in their neighbourhood, it was unheard of, surely it couldn’t be-

Techno’s heart rate jumped. Useless thoughts piled on top of one another as he hopelessly tried to push them away. His brain thought too much, cluttering up every piece of sensible and reasonable reasons that clearly were more likely than whatever fantastical story he was thinking. It was useful in English essays but right now all Techno wanted was a clear brain. He can’t be worrying this much over his younger brother who could take care of himself just fine.

_“You’re a lot whinier and puny than what Jun said.”_

The dark brunette ears perked at the muffled voices, followed by a loud crash and cry from another person. There were people inside the male changing rooms, but who would be staying this late? The football team were training, class ended an hour ago. 

“Get up! Why aren’t you getting up?”

Another crash. 

Techno knew the sound. Slamming into the tin lockers in the changing rooms made a noise that reverberated through the whole place. He winced at the sound of what was possibly bones cracking. He opened the door ever so slightly, peering inside. 

The mop of blonde, that red baseball T-shirt covered in what Techno hoped was only dirt. Of course, it had to be his beloved brother. 

Techno couldn’t hear anything, a strange ringing noise pierced his ears. 

He forcefully slammed the door open, charging for the nameless stranger who he couldn’t even see properly. Techno shoved the stranger down, striking them down with his right hand as his left held onto their collar. His eyes only saw red as he continued pummelling the startled man in the face, stomach, whatever, without end. He couldn’t feel the pain of his fingers spraining as the other kept blocking his hits over and over again. Under his breath, Techno hissed at the force of the other scraping at his arms in attempts to get back up. 

In the background, he could hear almost hear indistinct voices crying, strangely sounding like Wilbur shouting at him. Techno kept his hand fisted at the other’s collar as he kneed into the other’s ribs with a force that he shouldn’t have possessed. The stranger fought back, bashing him back in the face using their elbow, right in the nose and cheek junction. It stung, but the pain numbed, white noise was all he could hear through his ears. 

The middle brother clenched his fists once again, socking the right fellow in the cheek. 

“Techno, it’s fine, you can stop!” Wilbur cried, pulling his younger brother back by the collar of his shirt. 

“Why can’t I stop!?” Techno shouted, desperately trying to escape Wilbur’s tight grip. His eyes glistened, ready to fight again before he felt a softer hand tugging on his sleeve. The brother tilted his head to face their youngest brother, shaking his head left to right. 

“Yet again your brothers always save you like this. You’re nothing without them! Techno, you have no say in our spat!” The stranger got up from the floor, breathing heavily as he spat at the three brothers in front of him. 

Before the man could get closer to them, Wilbur let go of his collar and decked the man unconscious by hitting a sharp blow to their head. Techno’s heavy breathing stilled as the adrenaline started to fade away. The pain was starting to resurface as his arm started burning up in agony. The dark brunette refused to let his low pain-tolerance get to the better of him now when clearly Tommy was the top priority. Speaking of the boy, Techno turned around to see Tommy cowering behind him, clutching at his sweater so tight he could see their knuckles turning white. 

He couldn’t bear to see Tommy like this, neither of them could. 

Despite the fact that Tommy was taller than him, Techno knelt down, cupping Tommy’s face with his sprained fingers trembling. He saw all the grazes and bruises dealt to his brother’s once porcelain skin, heaven’s know that his shirt is hiding more underneath. 

Wilbur managed to croak out, “Are you okay?”

Tommy weakly sighed, tugging at his baseball shirt’s sleeves. “I’m tired.”

That was all they needed for now. Techno squatted down, gesturing for the boy to get on. “You’re not walking home when you look like you’ve been through hell and back.” 

For once, the blonde simply nodded, slumping onto his older brother’s back. Wilbur grimaced as the unconscious boy in front of him. They could deal with this tomorrow. With a quick phone call to the front office, as Techno brought Tommy out, Wilbur phoned the school nurse. Techno and Wilbur knew they’d probably face worse punishments in the future, but at that moment, the top priority was keeping their treasured brother safe. 

Wilbur shut his phone off, grabbing both Techno and his bags as they made their way to the school entrance. Neither of the three brothers spoke on the way back, simply trudging through the streets on that Tuesday afternoon as the sky slowly turned orange. The siblings trudged through the empty streets, distantly hearing the wooshes of cars passing by. Thank heavens for Phil getting a house near the school, Techno’s arms and legs felt like they were going to collapse. 

Perhaps if it were a few years ago, before Tommy went through puberty, Techno could swing that boy around like nothing. Alas, the tall gene ran through all three of them and Tommy shot up quicker than all of them. He chuckled to himself, happy on how much Tommy had grown. He was healthy, Wilbur was healthy, Techno was healthy, what more could they ask for? Phil had raised them all well, despite only being 17 when their own parents disappeared off the face of the Earth. 

“Phil’s going to murder us, isn’t he?” Tommy muttered, giggling quietly into Techno’s shoulder. It was quite a change from his constant ear-piercing shouting and energy that could only stem from 10 shots of espresso. 

“Absolutely.” The three shook with laughter as they finally reached the front door. Thank the heavens for Phil working late tonight, Techno knew he would’ve been cooked bacon. 

Wilbur locked the doors, throwing the keys somewhere on the standing coat hanger. Techno let Tommy off his back as he followed Wilbur to grab medical supplies. “We’ll be back in a minute, stay still. Alright?” 

Tommy nodded, limping to his room.

The elder two worked silently, grabbing whatever was available in the storage cupboard. Bandages, alcohol, painkillers, anything. The eldest of the three went and grabbed a few snacks from the pantry. Techno winced as he tried to grip on the kitchen tap to get a glass of water with his sprained hand. Wilbur’s frown deepened at the sight as they walked over to Tommy’s room. 

“Just let us do the work, okay?” Wilbur muttered as he opened up the alcohol and cotton balls. Techno grabbed the iodine container and started dipping cotton wipes, mirroring what Wilbur was doing. He started rolling up Tommy’s sleeves, grimacing at the number of gashes that ran along his elbow. 

Wilbur looked up at Tommy, “This’ll sting.”

Tommy let out a soft hiss when he felt both Techno and Wilbur cleaning out his wounds, Wilbur wiping his face and Techno, his arms and hands. 

It was strangely nice to be taken care of by his brothers. All problems in this world could disappear because he had three older brothers he could rely on. Tommy smiled to himself at the thought, to know he was protected. When he needed help, he could always go to them, when they needed help, they could go to him. 

“So, care to explain?” 

Wilbur raised an eyebrow, dressing the wounds alongside Techno who passed another roll of bandages. Techno held metal clips in his mouth as he clipped bandage after bandage, humming to Wilbur’s words. Tommy swallowed a lump of guilt down, staring at his dangling feet off the bed. 

“He was hitting Tubbo and stole his bag with his summative assignment. The fucking cu- idiot stole the assignment and handed it in himself.” Tommy sniffed. “Tubbo worked hard on that. That guy was the new kid that just came into our grade and already started pestering the kids.” 

Techno sighed, nodding to his words. Wilbur exhaled tiredly, ruffling Tommy’s already messed up blonde hair. He placed a bandaid over a cut on Tommy’s cheek. 

“I had always been able to take them out but he hit harder than the others. I was going to meet you after school but saw him kicking some kid behind the gym so I stepped in.” Tommy eyed Techno’s arm warily. 

“You really need to stop being such a vigilante and hero to these kids.” Techno ran his hand through his hair, scowling at the blonde. 

“Yeah, I know. But I can’t do anything else.” 

That was enough for the other two. Wilbur gently pushed Tommy’s side, grimacing.

“Don’t say that. Don’t you dare say that.”

Tommy looked up to his brothers, as much as he hated to admit. 

Wilbur was the popular and talented boy in the school, a heartthrob. The man spent half an hour a day doing his hair, causing them to be late a lot of mornings. He was a snarky bastard on the outside, always needing to annoy Tommy with whatever rant he had today. As annoying as he was, Wilbur’s determination to push to get better was admirable. He wasn’t blessed with a pretty voice, he spent hours a day working to get there. Wilbur had another job to help Phil support the family, and he always gave the best advice to Tommy. 

Techno was a nerd, his closed-off personality left little to no interaction with people at their school unless it was with the ‘Trio’ and telling others to fuck off. The teachers endlessly praised the boy, always comparing both Tommy and Wilbur to their “prodigy” of the family. Sure he bullied Tommy the most, but he was a good brother. He was busy with school, teachers piling work after work on his shoulders and he willingly takes it to improve. He studied hard, yet he still had time to help Tommy with his school work and play Minecraft with him in their spare time. 

God, how could he forget Phil. Their eldest brother who took all three of them under his wing. At just 18 he had custody over them, taking the father role of the brothers. He worked part-time jobs after his own career to sustain them in one house. He wanted to make Phil proud, but Phil would look down at what he’s doing now. In the times where he wasn’t working or catching up on sleep, Phil would willingly play around with his siblings. If comfort was a person, Phil would be it. 

What was Tommy? The kid who hit other kids, to act like a hero. He wasn’t that good in school, heck he couldn’t work out music either. Sports and physical activity was all he had. The other two knew of his endeavours of fighting with other kids, acting like a brave hero that saved the day. It wasn’t the greatest solution to dealing with bullies, but it was enough. 

It was not enough. 

Wilbur pulled over a chair, sitting down in front of Tommy by the bed. He clasped his hands together, “We’re always here for you, Tommy. You know that.”

“That still doesn’t make me feel better to know that I have to always rely on you guys! You guys have a good future ahead.” 

“Tommy-” Wilbur was about to interrupt before Tommy continued.

“Wilbur, you can talk better than I could walk, Techno, you're smarter than all the teachers at our school, all I can do is hit other children!” 

Tommy’s voice got louder as he spoke, water flowing like rivers down his face. There were a few cuts they still hadn’t cleaned, causing his tears to sting the fresh cuts and tint red. He was tired. Tommy hated conflict, why did he even inflict it onto others. It just caused more of a mess for Phil, Wilbur and Techno to deal with. 

Now, they’d all get into trouble for what they did to protect their youngest sibling. He could’ve prevented it if he actively didn’t engage in other people’s business. The only thing he was good at, he couldn’t even do to protect Techno who was much less inclined to use his fists to hurt another. God, he was tired and he wanted to sleep forever. 

The stranger was right, he was just a little kid hanging off of his older brothers. He was nothing without them. He was a nuisance to them. 

“I couldn’t even move when Techno came. He’s hurt and it’s all because of me! I’m a coward, I’m weak, and the only thing I could do, I didn’t.” Tommy sniffed, voice failing him as the tears came unwillingly, vision blurring by the second. It didn’t help that the alcohol stung like salt rubbed into the wound. His cheeks flushed, rubbing his eyes hastily. 

“Tommy. Tommy, shh- shh, don’t cry.” Techno swallowed, pulling the other in by the shoulders and hugging his side. He reached over to grab the tissue box, cleaning up his younger sibling’s damp cheeks. 

He pointed at his injured arm, smiling weakly, “I’m perfectly fine, it’s not even my writing hand so I’ll be good.”

“But-” 

Techno glared, an all too familiar gaze to the other. Tommy sighed, knowing there was no reason to argue. 

“As I said, it is not your fault. Listen, I had my pent-up emotions I needed to clear, and hitting the guy was a great stress reliever for exams!” The elder drew out a quiet, but still there, chuckle from the blonde. 

“Your job as a sibling is to annoy the fuck out of us and embarass us in front of our friends. You think I couldn’t take down that bitchass kid? Are you saying I’m too weak?” Techno flexed his non-existent biceps, grinning at Tommy’s smile getting bigger. 

Wilbur leaned forward on the chair, meeting Tommy’s reddened eyes. 

“You paint yourself too badly. Sure, you may just see yourself as some violent kid, but to us, to the whole family, you’re more than that. What I see is a courageous kid who decided to take initiative instead of blatantly ignoring the problem at hand.”

“What I see is a kid who’s my younger sibling who always lights up our roughest day with his presence. Relying on each other is literally what means to be a sibling, kid, you don’t embody their words.” 

“Wilbur’s right, you know. You’re a good person, and that’s enough for us. There’s no need for you to fit into whatever everyone else is, what you are is helping other kids as well.” Techno said. 

Tommy hung his head, his sniffling becoming evidently clearer as the other two heard droplets of water splashing onto the wooden floor. Techno nervously tilted his head, mouthing to Wilbur if they said something wrong. His hand stilled in wiping Tommy’s tears, staying frozen mid-air. Wilbur glanced back with the same anxious look, not knowing what to do. 

The two elders were startled when Tommy wrapped his arms around both of their necks tightly, causing the three of them to clash together into a huddle. He sobbed into their chests, crying his heart out, incoherent words muttered under the tears. Techno and Wilbur knew, a good cry was probably what he needed. 

“Thank you.” Tommy managed to croak out, feeling both Techno and Wilbur’s arms wrapping around his body. They smiled, admittedly with some liquid secreting from their eyes as well. 

“Love you kid.” Techno mumbled, choking up in his own words as he patted Tommy on the head. Wilbur let Tommy burrow his head and grip at his body as the younger continued to bawl. 

“You’re strong, we’re proud of you, okay?”

It would be a few hours before Phil returned back home, they had enough time to clean up. 

“Oh god, we have a shit ton of homework.” The three of them groaned simultaneously, glimpsing at the heavy school bags thrown haphazardly into the corner. 

_(Phil would later on find out and refused to let Tommy escape his clutches for a further 10 minutes, but that’s okay)_

**Author's Note:**

> helloo~ i wrote this on a whim bc i read this post: https://antarctic-bay.tumblr.com/post/616124295075201024/and-they-were-a-family-oh-my-god-they-were-a 
> 
> i'm devastated on the idea of sleepy bios + tommy family dynamic :((. next time i wanna write more phil into it bc he's just, a wholesome man who deserves the world. 
> 
> anyway i hope you have a great day and enjoyed this :D.
> 
> i'm on twitter @inozuart, I post art and shitpost about kpop and mcyt so ig slap a follow if that interests you :D


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